Well, we're done with a quarter of the year and it flew by! I've always been pretty good at keeping a calendar. Even rewind to middle school, and I was obsessed with my 'planner' and keeping everything organized.
Now, if I wasn't organized, I don't think I'd be able to handle everything life has to throw at me! Keeping a schedule is where I think organization starts. I'm very much old school when it comes to calendars. I feel like I have tried everything digital under the sun, and while I really like Outlook for work purposes, I think nothing beats a paper calendar. Actually being able to write and cross things off and see it all in your own writing is just what I prefer.
I've definitely perfected my 'routine' when it comes to managing calendar. While it's a very personal thing because everyone has different preferences and lifestyles, I thought I'd share a little of what works for me. I used to use a book-style planner, but now I prefer a month-view desk calendar. I like to be able to see everything all in one place. I like to see what the following week has to offer and it's the best way for me to lay out my editorial calendar, too.
This is nothing revolutionary at all, but I think what helps me the most is color coding everything. You can see in the photo above how I use colors for different categories of 'life'. Oh, and if you haven't tried Sharpie pens, they are the BEST. They're the only pens I'll use. They really don't bleed!
It's so easy to just glance at a day the night before and have an idea of what is going on based on the colors. I've joked about this before, but I also still use white-out to change things on my calendar. Also, I use the notes section to write a monthly to-do list. It's actually part to-do list but really more of my 'goals' for the month. I think just seeing them there every single day as a reminder is a help and a motivator to keep me going!
For day-to-day schedules and tasks, I use a separate paper list in a notebook. Each 'list' is broken down by weekly to-do's and goals and then broken down by day. I mostly work from that, but my calendar is like my master life outline.
What do you do to keep your life and schedule organized? I'd love for you to share in the comments so we can all share great tips and ideas... and I'd especially like to hear if anyone else is still a paper calendar user! I'm not the only one, right?!
1 comment:
I still use paper calendars too. I have a monthly wall calendar of beach scenes for quick glances, a red business diary-like one at my desk, and a small weekly/monthly calendar in my purse for appointments and my work schedules. I can't do electronic calendars - if I don't physically write it down, pen to paper, I won't remember it.
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